He held a hand out in invitation, and she studied the part of his body she knew so well—okay, one of the parts she knew well. His hands had always looked so strong and capable, even before she’d gotten involved with him. Long fingers, work-roughened skin, so much skill and talent…and yeah, she wasn’t just talking about with a hammer or a power tool.

With a minute shake of her head at herself, she bit down on her lip, a reminder to keep herself in check. She took one step toward him, unable to deny that look in his eyes, and when his hand remained outstretched, she eyed it, met his gaze again, and tentatively placed her palm on top of his. He closed his fingers gently around hers and tugged her closer.

“Hear me out,” he said.

“I’m listening.”

“The other night you said you loved me. Did you mean it?”

“That’s not something I would say unless I meant it,” she said, feeling vulnerable, trying to take her hand back, but he held on firmly.

“Good,” he breathed out. “I didn’t want you to say it Monday, because I didn’t think you should love me.”

Sierra narrowed her eyes at him.

“But that was Monday,” he rushed to say.

“And today?”

“I want you to love me. Because I don’t want to be the only one. In love.”

There was a catch in her chest. “You’re in love?” She couldn’t help the grin breaking through as she said it. “With me?”

He laughed out a nervous exhale. “Of course with you.” He pulled her into his chest, wrapping his arms around her, and Sierra breathed out fully for the first time since she’d identified him in the snow outside her window. He buried his face in her hair and sucked in a slow, deep breath. “I love you, Sierra.”

She closed her eyes and savored every bit of him, the words he spoke, the clean, arousing scent of him, the familiar feel of his muscular chest beneath her cheek.

Cole pulled back enough that he could look into her eyes. “I’ve never said that to another woman. Never wanted to. Still didn’t want to on Monday, but”—he pressed his forehead to hers, grinning—“you got me. Whether you want me or not, you got me, and I know that telling you how I feel is one thing, but I also know that your concerns were justified, and that’s what I’ve been thinking about.”

“All night.”

“All damn night. I had a lot of ground to cover, and though I’m not about to suggest I could be fixed in one night, I did figure some things out, came to some decisions.”

“That you’re okay with loving me?” she said, needing to hear it yet again.